Raw Vegan Carrot Cake

Raw Vegan Carrot Cake

Raw Vegan Carrot Cake. Oh my, I wanted to make something sweet for Easter dinner and did I ever. I remembered that when I was taking my culinary program through Rouxbe.com that there was this carrot cake recipe. The recipe was a practice recipe that I never had the opportunity to make. I’ve always had it in my mind to make it one day and today was the day.

Now I’m not huge on sweet, I’m more of a savoury person. When I do go for sweet, it has to be worth it. It has to be sweet, and not too sweet, kinda healthy is great, crunchy, lots of flavour, moist, creamy….all the things I love.  This raw vegan carrot cake hits bang on my criteria of yummy on so many levels. I’m not kidding, it is spectacular. It has texture and crunch, substance and sweetness, creaminess and it just a little bit healthy too!

I made it pretty close to the Rouxbe recipe, they have the best recipes! I hope you love it as much as I do!

Ok what will you need for your Raw Vegan Carrot Cake …..

Raw Vegan Carrot Cake

This Raw Vegan Carrot Cake is made in two layers. Both delicious in their own right, together, heavenly. You’ll make a base and then the creamy cashew topping. Oh yeah!

The base layer or crust can be more or less refined, depending on how fine you cut up and chop your ingredients. Really a personal preference. The base layer is crunchy and sweet, no fluffy cake here, lots of texture, flavour and crunch.

What will you need to make the base layer of your Raw Vegan Carrot Cake:

• 1 c Medjool dates, softened and minced (about 10)

  

• 1/2 c fresh lemon juice
• 2 c carrots, grated (use organic whenever possible)
• 1.5 c chopped organic golden raisins, rinsed and dried (could substitute dried fruit of your choice)
• 1.5 c raw cashews or pecans or almonds or a combination of any of the three, ground into a meal
• 1.5 dried shredded organic coconut
• 1/2 t nutmeg, freshly grated
• 1/2 t sea salt

  

How to make the base layer of your Raw Vegan Carrot Cake:

1. Remove the pits from the medjool dates and soak in the fresh lemon juice for 1-2 hours, until they soften
2. When the dates are softened, remove the dates from the lemon and mince the dates, save the juice

   

3. Grind your raw nuts into a fine meal, grate your carrots and chop your raisins
4. Add all of the above ingredients into a mixing bowl and stir together
5. Add in the shredded coconut, I cut mine up too and I saved a it for the top
6. Add in your nutmeg, salt and mix well
7. Place into a baking pan or casserole dish and spread evenly over the bottom of the pan
8. Press firmly to make your crust

   

   

   

9. Cover and place in the fridge
10. Make your icing – soooooo good

Maple Vanilla Frosting for your Raw Vegan Carrot Cake

The top of your dessert is a creamy sauce that will thicken up to a certain extent, I’m freezing some of mine and that might make it a bit more firm too.

I could literally eat a bucket of this icing. So delicious, creamy, just sweet enough, gooey, did I say delicious? The other good news is that its pretty easy to make too.

What you’ll need for your Maple Vanilla Frosting:

• 1 c raw cashews, soaked for several hours, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 c coconut butter (coconut oil and the coconut meat combined)

  

• 1/2 c maple syrup
• 1/4 c water
• 1 vanilla bean, slice open and scrape the insides

  

• 1/4 t sea salt
• Lemon juice (I added in some of the lemon juice that the dates were soaking in to bump up the flavour, optional)

How to make your Maple Vanilla Frosting

1. Place all the ingredients into a high speed blender (best, regular will do)
2. Blend till creamy smooth. Taste and decide if the flavour balance is just right.
3. Spread on top of the base and place in fridge or freezer to firm up
4. Serve by itself or with a bit of coconut milk ice cream.

This Raw Vegan Carrot Cake is extremely satisfying so start out with a small piece and have more if you feel like it. You know you will go back for more later!